Customer Struggles To Park at Costco, What They See Next Sparks Outrage

Newsweek

15-07-2025

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A driver has sparked outrage online for the way they parked in a completely full parking lot.
Reddit user u/Maleficent_Point_298 shared a photo in a popular subreddit showing a car covered with a tarp and stretched across two spaces. The post quickly went viral, racking up over 8,800 upvotes.
"I despise visiting Costco because of how busy it is normally especially on a Saturday. Seeing that idiot taking up 2 spaces when the parking lot is completely full was infuriating to say the least," the original poster told Newsweek.
"Not a single parking space at Costco and then there's this jackoff," they wrote.
Etiquette expert Richie Frieman, known as the Modern Manners Guy, weighed in on the viral post with Newsweek, using it as a springboard to remind readers of basic public decency when it comes to parking.
"I would hope that everyone perceives the Reddit Parking Space Invader as a certified unmannerly bottom feeder of the etiquette world," Frieman said.
"This person demands themselves to be not just the center of attention but the center of how the world revolves. Their disrespect to others isn't just a one-time thing—it's the only way they know how to live," he added.
The Unspoken Social Norms of Parking
One Car, One Spot—Always
"Unlike Super-Car in the Costco parking lot, it's only one spot per car. Period. The end. I can't believe anyone would even debate this?" Frieman wrote. He added, however, that large vehicles like oversize pickups or campers shouldn't try to squeeze into tight spaces between sedans. "If you have this sort of apocalyptic vehicle, you must sacrifice a closer spot to accommodate your monster truck, and park farther away," he said.
He added that, if someone believes their car is too nice to be touched, they should "go as far away as possible."
Don't Park Too Close—or Crooked
"The lines in a space aren't goals to see how close you can get to them; it's meant to show you where the middle should be," Frieman said.
"If you are a person who is in the car when a rude person like this knowingly parks without a care, it's your job to call them out," Frieman added. "Nothing grants someone the right to 'own' all areas they grace with their presence."
Stock image: An aerial shot shows a full parking lot.
Stock image: An aerial shot shows a full parking lot.
stockbusters/iStock / Getty Images Plus
Reddit Reacts
The post sparked hundreds of comments, with users unleashing their own sarcasm and disbelief.
"Imagine being that anally retentive to spend the time covering your car when going to the shops …," one user wrote.
"Not to mention double parking so it doesn't get scratched, but being a lure for vindictive people who'd totally scratch it out of spite," another added.
"It could be someone who works there … but still, that is so obnoxious," noted one commenter.
"Plot twist. It's the manager's car," another posted.
"Even bigger plot twist, OP [original poster] is the manager," added a third user.
Newsweek reached out to the Costco press office via its contact request form regarding its parking policy. The piece will be updated if the company provides a comment.
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